13 User Reviews of Sea Princess Cruise Ship

The ship had been revamped and so was very clean and
presentable. Be prepared for a lot of oldies, we are in our 60's,
but the ship and the food and entertainment were very good, could
not fault service or the staff. Book your own tours if possible and
do lots of research before going for each port, the shuttles will
take you into town most stops in not direct from ship and then the
information centres give you great help. We only had a few places
we had not been to before but still you manage to fill the day and
explore more things. Would not do this again but will sail with
Princess again.

Our 5th cruise is now completed (November 15 - 29, 2010) We
completed all our packing, clothes, monies, electronic gadgets
including sanity ready to see family in Barbados and then get on
the wonderful 14 day cruise of the Islands around Barbados (Grand
Caribbean Adventurer Round-trip Barbados). We live in Victoria ,
Vancouver Island , Canada so ahead of us were two main flights,
Victoria to Toronto than Toronto to Barbados but we would have 10
days in Barbados to relax before boarding the Sea Princess.

We overnighted at the Airport Hotel in Toronto at Terminal 3.
Beware of Airlines these days who change aircraft on you. Air
Canada changed their aircraft from Boeing 763 / 767 to an Airbus
321 / 319.

We had booked Executive Class and were looking forward to those
new 'Stretch and Lie Down seats. Well at least we still had more
leg and seat pitch room plus were able to relax in the lounges. In
all our years visiting family in Barbados I had not seen any of the
Islands around Barbados

I did a couple of things prior to the trip. Bought Trip and
Medical Insurance, ordered Rum and Coke and Ginger for the cabin,
new summer clothes bought, as I discovered I had no short sleeves
shirts and found four pairs of pants bought last year hidden away.
My Bajan wife was right, you need more clothes in the tropics and
wear shorts. In our case we travelled with an extra suitcase which
came in handy for all the gifts we bought on the islands for
grandchildren and dirty clothes. For dirty clothes we had a plastic
bag that compresses air.

As we were walk-on passengers not Air/Cruise then we were driven
to the terminal where you can get a porter to take your bags to the
ship ($1 each bag minimal) as you have to walk through the actual
terminal which is full of great shops, phones. A person is at a
table to ensure you sign the health form questions, then checks
your name off a list. In our case we confused them as the list was
really only Air/Cruise passengers so I just said look we do have
our tickets, where do we board.

You have to walk outside the terminal , across a road and into
the shed near the ship. The shed is where most of the Brits on the
Air/Cruise arrive by bus around mid afternoon, in our case we came
about 2pm and were able to miss all the hordes arriving by bus that
day. As we walked in the shed from the ship side then we had to
navigate the ropes to control the mob, just us two to see about 15
check-in folks wondering who we were. In two minute we were checked
in , CC verified, and then stopped by the photographer as were his
first ones.

On to the ship, sea card into security unit and SMILE. Nobody
takes you to your cabin but they do ask what deck and point to
elevator. We were on Aloha (deck 10) A327 Balcony which at first we
found small because we had been on Golden Princess a few years back
which is a newer ship. Not to worry , once we had our bags and
unpacked, lots of room for two adults and the balcony does help for
privacy and quiet.

The service by our room steward was great in he respected our
times in the room and we told him when we would be out, it also
helps to place the card that says clean or leave us alone please in
the lock. One day our toilet overflowed by not stopping when
filling during the ships emergency practice day and our steward
responded to my cry for help as he was out in the hall, five
minutes later our safe would not open as I had accidentally pressed
a reset button. The Pursers Office sent some one up to reset the
combination. course leading zeros are not recommended. A few days
later our shower control knob parts flew off onto the shower floor.
I had a small set of tools and fixed it then called our steward to
let him know.

The ship is about 2,200 passengers of which we had 1,915 Brits
on board, 25 USA , 26 Canadians and a mix of others which means
when the sun is out then you better get a lounge chair early as all
the Brits will be SUNNING themselves.

Our table mates were great as we had a table of 10, all with
different accents including us and our servers were great but over
worked as they had three other tables of 4-6 each plus they get
your wine and rum for you. We closed the room most nights as we
were on 2nd seating and because of that missed some of the shows.
The main theatre is not that large and only one aisle is in the
middle which makes moving through the seats ugly at times so you
normally have to arrive 15-30 minutes prior to a show, not my
style. Shows were not bad but I found the bar and movie better ,
the shows tend to repeat including the daily events each day.

It is a nice ship and had been adjusted for British tastes in
food, beer but the only Caribbean food offered was Jamaican Jerk
Chicken, they could offer more variety of Island food but I
understand majority of food, is out of the states and shipped
frozen. The food was good and meals were hot. Wine testing event
was not expensive ($15) for five samples and a free glass. We had
an extra sea day when we could not dock at Grand Turks due to waves
and wind and as this is a port intensive cruise , my thought would
be to introduce a 4th sea day in the last five days.

All the Islands offer different variety and experiences but when
it comes to shopping it is better to space your purchases out per
Island otherwise you might have bought everything in the first few
days.

The ship offers specials on the first sea day and Internet
specials as in coupons of xn free minutes are offered the first day
and then some others. The only add-on expense is when they charge
you $4 for an admin fee to setup your Internet. The speed can be
very slow , stick to emails or use Internet cafés on Islands
, most Islands will not give you free access unless you buy
something.

St Lucia was one of our best islands including its rum and tour.
The ships excursions were fine as we normally take 1/2 day type
ones and take other days to tour by walking around the dock area
ourselves. St Maarten is wild when six cruise ships are in, like
20,000 folks.

What seems to be new is that every island wants to see your sea
card for security and you must have your passport on your person,
no exception. Some of the docks are large to walk to the ship, so
ensure you are on board before the appointed time. If it rains on
the way back the crew offer towels and coffee on the dock, nice
gesture.

The only thing that bothered me was when having lunch or an
afternoon snack at the buffet as most times a section was closed
off to allow setup for supper . The food and choices were fine and
they do come to your table offering drinks , coffee , tea .

Most of the crew do go out of their way to help you and it is a
nice ship. The cruise itself is busy but that is me as I like to
have some do nothing days We had a wonderful time and will do it
again.

Princess ships still offer excellent service across the world
and are our preferred cruise company as UK customers. However,
there is one part of the experience that rates as our worst
travelling in 35 years. The airline used between the UK and
Barbados has to give the worst flight experience possible.
Ineptitude on the ground - with resulting serious delays, and
cramped uncomfortable seats once you get on board. Princess and the
airline seem unable to coordinate between them or take
responsibility, each suggesting talk to the other. Between 8 and 12
hours of misery in both directions.

Flights for other destinations with Princess have been
wonderfull. Last years flights to and from Barbados were rubbish
and this years even worse beyond our worst expectations.

Be warned. We are now going to use another cruise line to the
Caribbean as Princess have no interest in our comments. It takes 2
or 3 days to recover at the beginning of the cruise and the same
dreading the journey home at the other end. Long haul is daunting
enough - but enough is enough.

We did a reposition cruise from Southampton to Quebec via
Bergen, Shetland Islands, Faeroe Islands, 3 Iceland stops,
Greenland, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia - 16 days aboard ship. We
enjoyed all the stops, choosing to do all our sightseeing on our
own rather than booking shore excursions. The ship provided
reasonable information about each port which made this a reasonable
option. However, the passengers who we talked to about the shore
excursions reported mostly favorable experiences. The primary
complaint being the usual one - inconsiderate fellow passengers who
delayed returning at appointed times.

Overall, we thought this was a good cruise experience. The
appearance of the ship and its layout were attractive and
convenient. The entertainment in the non-theater lounges was good.
The trivia games (which we do not enjoy) were well attended.

We were very impressed with the main dining room that had
assigned dinner time and tables. The food was tasty and
attractively served, and there were several enticing possibilities
for each course every evening. The always available shrimp
cocktail, steak and potato would satisfy the simple appetite, while
the more exotic fare would be good for others. Vegetarian
selections were not interesting

most nights, however - not even the curries. Deserts were
excellent, including the sugar free (read no sugar added, as there
often was fruit in these offerings). We did not try the any time
dining room.

The 24 hour buffet was adequate, had some good points, but some
real draw backs. The good point was that the food was mostly pretty
good, with good selections at all times. The real draw back was how
cramped the space was, which made for much confusion at prime meal
times. It was difficult to get drinks as the set up of cups,
tumblers, and coffee and tea was illogical. Often it was nearly
impossible to find seats at breakfast and lunch.

The biggest draw back at the buffet, in our view, was the eggs.
Whereas they had a sign warning of the dangers of eating partially
cooked eggs, the trays of scrambled eggs were usually runny, no
fully cooked fried eggs were offered except as a special order, and
hard boiled eggs were not offered. When I did ask for a hard boiled
egg, it was soft boiled. There was a cook who would prepare eggs
and omelets to order. However, each of the men who were assigned
this task were masters of avoiding eye contact, turning their backs
to passengers even when not required, and generally prolonging the
time to get eggs unreasonably. On one occasion when I was the only
person in line, I waited nearly 10 minutes for the buy to even take
my order while he stood cooking more sunny side up eggs to add to
those already in wait for non-existent diners! Our complaint about
this was noted by the restaurant captain, but there was no
improvement in the service on this score.

The difficulty in finding seats at the buffet could be because
of the very limited availability of the main dining room for lunch
or breakfast. Whereas at dinner there are two times of about 2
hours each, breakfast and lunch were limited to early times, and
then only 1 and ½ hours total each. The impression is they
do not really want you in the main dining room for these meals.

Our cabin was adequate, service there mostly adequate. No more
and no less than expected.

Since we left from Southampton, many of the passengers were
European, mostly British, although many were French, the
destination being influential, I suppose. This presented
opportunities to meet people from various places, which is always
fun.

On the other hand, Europeans seem to be much more likely to
smoke than Americans, and this was a definite draw back on the
cruise. Although the theater lounges were completely non-smoking,
the other lounges were not, with the primary dance spot, the
Wheelhouse Bar, giving the smoking section the center of the room,
with the non-smokers stuck around the perimeter. This resulted in
non-smokers having a hazy view of the dance floor at best, and a
relatively smoky dance venue. The other dance spot was not really a
lounge, but part of the open atrium, where a duo performed each
night, and dancing was made available by closing off a doorway to
make a sort of dance floor in the hallway. Smoking was allowed here
as well, but at least the open atrium allowed it to float up and
away.

There was no real opportunity for pre-dinner dancing, as the
bands in all venues stopped a while before dinner. After dinner,
the Wheelhouse had good dancing, in the smoke, but the atrium venue
was set up for a trivia quiz from 10 to 11, then a break for the
duo, who ran the quiz, then, finally, less smoky dancing was
available. At least the duo were very good and responsive to the
room.

Karaoke was available many nights, but the equipment was
difficult for the crew to operate. They were not always able to
turn off the vocals, and the poor amateurs were set to competing
with a professional on the sound track. They ran a contest to
select 6 people to compete in a final the last night of the cruise.
As it turned out, the competition was not limited to amateurs, one
contestant stating her occupation as professional singer. This
seemed out of place. All was not lost, however, as she lost to an
amateur who indicated only a second attempt at singing! Still, it
does seem like karaoke should be limited to amateurs. Also, several
of the passengers really liked singing, but on preliminary
competition nights were limited to one song even if there were no
other passengers who wanted to sing. The impression was that the
crew did not really like this and wanted to limit the activities.
The assistant cruise director even made rude remarks to one
gentleman about his desire to have more karaoke.

The captain of the ship was really terrific. He gave lots of
information about our itinerary, the weather, our progress, what to
expect during inclement weather, etc. His comments were clear and
accurate, and kept us at ease even during a bumpy stretch when we
neared a tropical storm.

All in all, we liked this ship and would cruise on it again.
However, I would not expect it to be a perfect experience, and I
would seek out more dance friendly cruises, such as those offered
by Holland America.

I am a 24yo cruise enthusiast who has been on 14 cruises on many
different cruise lines. During college, I studied the cruise
industry. My professional career has thus far focused around
visitor centers and hotels as well as various forms of the
hospitality industry. If you have any questions or comments about
this review, feel free to email me at seth.widdowson@gmail.com One
word of warning – even with wonderful modern technology I am
still a poor speller and my grammar goes along with that – so
best of luck to you reading this review!

Details about this cruise:

This was a seven-night Northern European Capitals cruise aboard
Princess Cruises', Sea Princess. It left round trip from
Southampton cruising to Amsterdam, Oslo, Copenhagen, and
Helsingborg, Sweden. The port days and time at sea were a perfect
mix, just enough relaxation time and just enough port time. We
booked two Cat BBs located on Aloha deck, staterooms 625 and 627.
These were not spacious staterooms but they were comfortable and
worked very well for us. We had our wonderful stateroom steward
Dante. He opened the partition between the two balconies, a great
feature that gave

our rooms the feel of a two-room suite. If you can afford two
balcony cabins and are traveling with family or friends, this would
be a great option. I did not like the chairs on the balcony, they
were very flimsy, and you cannot put your feet up. My sister and I
ended up swiping some chairs from near Sundaes, the ice cream
parlor. The new chairs worked a lot better and Dante even removed
our old chairs for us without saying a word. Overall, they were
very functional cabins.

Three great things about the cruise:

1. The ports = By far on the best itineraries we have been on.
With this cruise being just one week long and full of major
European cities, Copenhagen and Oslo were the best. Amsterdam and
Oslo's approaches and departures are not to be missed, truly 110%
the value of booking a balcony cabin. I would rebook this cruise
just to go back to the ports. With so many great cities, one cannot
see every thing they want to see in just one visit.

2. MUTS or Movies Under The Stars = Why was this not thought of
before now and why is it not on every cruise ship by now? To me
MUTS is far better than a rock-climbing wall! After a long day of
traveling, the last thing one wants to do is to go sit in a hot
show lounge and watch the same old boring Broadway reruns. MUTS
gets you out side, relaxing, with great fresh popcorn, and great
movies. The perfect end to the perfect day!

3.Personal Choice Dining = This was only our second cruise with
this type of feature. Oceania had their version and we really liked
the flexibility of it, so we decided to try it out on Princess. We
did not try the Sterling Steak House but we did love Café
Corniche. The pizza was not as great as it was on the Ocean
Princess in 2000. I became very frustrated during the cruise
because we could never get the same table twice in the main dining
room. It was not until the last day of the cruise when I was
packing the cruise docs that I saw that we could have "reserved" a
table of our choice every evening. When we cruise on Princess
again, Personal Choice will be my choice.

Three areas for improvement for Princess:

1. Service = What a disappointment! I do not know what has
happened to the Princess that I knew when we last cruised with them
back in 2001, but this was not the same product. Do not get me
wrong, I do not have overly high expectations. I just know what is
right and what is wrong, when it comes to customer service. You do
not role your eyes at a guest when they ask for a water refill. The
attendant that patrols the lido refilling drinks should not avoid
making eye contact with everyone. I watched one woman follow the
attendant around for five minutes before the attendant acknowledged
her. We had waiters in the main dining room that refused to
converse with us, and attendants in Corniche that said, "Oh, all
right," when we asked for Cokes with our pizza! As you can tell,
the list goes on. No doubt, you get the point that the service
aboard the Sea Princess needs drastic improvement.

2. Food = I cannot quite put my finger on it but there is
something seriously lacking with the food quality. Dishes that are
known Princess traditions were poorly presented and very bland. For
example, the crab quiche was very mealy and had large chunks of
processed imitation crabmeat sticking out of it. The lido buffet
was just not up to the normal cruise standards, bland food, no
refills and poor drink selection. If you wanted cereal, there were
no milk cartons. Just milk boxes, similar to juice cartons that you
have to puncture and then squeeze the milk out though the straw,
very awkward and annoying. These are just observations not
complaints.

3. Disembarkation for Ports of Call = This is truly an odd
observation. It centers around Princess' handling of an issue, that
had they handled differently, would have not turned in to a crisis.
We arrived at Amsterdam at 2:30pm. This is only 30 minutes late but
passengers had begun gathering in the stairways and atrium at 1:45
and some of the shore excursions were due to gather at 1:45 and
leave at 2. At 2:45, the announcement was made that we were cleared
and could proceed ashore. Therefore, we - and the entire ship, went
to the gangway - yes one gangway. Thus, chaos ensued. Here was
Princess' chance to make things right. Unfortunately, they did not
choose that option. Instead of explaining to passengers why there
was only one gangway being used, and that they were going to let
the paying customers of the shore excursions go of first, Princess
chose to remain silent. Over thirty minutes goes by and not one
non-shore excursions passenger has gone off the ship, we're now to
3:15pm. So, we gave up and headed back to our stateroom. We had
purchased hop-on hop-off canal boat tour on our own and had
purchased the twilight canal cruise with wine and cheese tasting
through Princess.

So at 3:45 we headed back towards the gangway. There was still a
very long line but at lest the non-shore excursion passengers were
being allowed ashore. We winded our way though the hallways and
stairways finally reached the atrium and the gangway. As we swiped
our card, a representative from the shore excursions department was
shouting at every one the excuse for all the delay. Apparently,
there was only one gangway and only one immigration inspector that
had to stamp our passports. We were off the ship as of 4:15. With
the lack of time, the oppressive heat in Amsterdam, and weary souls
we decided to do one loop around the city on our canal buss tickets
and then head back to the ship.

I want to make a note, that it was not the incident or late
disembarkation that peeved me. What did concern me, was lack of
integrity on Princess behalf, regarding how they handled the
situation. Upon further investigation with other passengers and
crew, we learned this was a regular occurrence when the ship
visited Amsterdam. Yes, passport control only allowing one gangway
is what held up disembarkation but Princess knew this was going to
happen and they did nothing about it. Simply notifying the
passengers that this might happen or setting up a disembarkation
system similar to tender-disembarkation would have made all the
difference.

I will also note that the shore excursions staff did redeem them
selves later in Copenhagen. We had initially booked the cruise for
a family of four and had all our shore excursions confirmed for a
family of four. As life often does, it threw me a curve ball and I
canceled my shore excursions when I though I was not going on the
cruise. Later on circumstances changed and I was able to go on the
cruise. Yet, the one shore excursion that I wanted to go on was
closed for booking. I went and spoke with the shore excursions
staff about getting to go on that shore excursion and the incident
in Amsterdam. AJ, one of the shore excursions team members was very
understanding and reconfirmed my faith in Princess. He got me into
the tour with the rest of my family and apologized for the lack of
integrity in Amsterdam. Thank you AJ!

Final Thoughts:

We are always optimistic travelers and bumps in the road are
just part of the journey. For example, our flight from Gatwick to
Newark took 12 hours as apposed to the normal 8. Once we got into
Newark, our flight to Greensboro was canceled. Therefore, we rented
a car, spent a night at a hotel, and drove back to NC the next day.
Just another day on vacation!

This was a great cruise and I would recommend it to just about
anyone. If you accept the fact that life is not perfect and look
for the good things in life, then you are guaranteed to have a
great vacation.

Thank you for reading this review. If you have any questions or
comments, feel free to contact me as seth.widdowson@gmail.com

My husband and I have just returned from a Southern Caribbean
cruise and albeit that I now have the flu (probably because it has
gone from 94 degrees F to -4 degrees!!)it was the BEST cruise I
have taken!! We have sailed on Cunard, NCL and Carnival before and
this was way above all of them. The ship it's self is
immaculate, the cabins on the small side but very well appointed
and the cabin stewards keep them spotless at all times - we seemed
to bring most of the sand in the caribbean back with us but there
was never a trace left!! The food is out of this world - I dread to
think how much weight I have put on. We chose the formal
dining in The Traviata and our assigned waiter was the most
couteous, knowledgeable guy you could ever wish to meet. I am
a very fussy eater and he always knew what I should choose.
From day one he knew what bread we liked, what we drank, etc etc oh
and by the way girls he was goregeous looking too!!! With regards
service in
the bars etc this was exceptional and again the most courteous I
have ever experienced - they really do make you feel that you are
the most important and special person in the world. The only very
slight negatives are that the "production" shows are in my personal
opinion poor. The singers couldn't hold a tune in a bucket
and even resorted to miming on one occasion, but hey there is so
much more to do like the movies under the stars which was excellent
and showed fairly recent films. The casino is very small and
has limited choice of slots etc but on most days appeared to be
fairly loose (very rare on a ship!)so I saved a few dollars. In
summary I loved this cruise and would only sail with Princess
again, I wouldn't even bother looking at any other brochures BUT
best of all I have the best tan imaginable. 10 out of 10.

My wife and I embarked in New York on the 10 day New England/Canada
cruise. This was our 5th cruise on Princess and our 15th overall.
We are in our 50's and well travelled. As usual for Princess,
embarkation was efficient and fast. We were in our cabin by
12:30PM. Comments on the ports: Boston, Newport, and Bar Harbor
were excellent. Most readers will be familiar with these areas and
I will not comment further. A purchased tour is probably a
necessity to fully enjoy the stop at Bar Harbor. Saint John,
NB gets my award for the friendliest port ever visited. I was very
impressed by the welcome and it made up for the attractions being
somewhat limited. It's worth a stop. Halifax, NS was modestly
enjoyable. The drive to Peggy's Cove (on a tour) is worthwile for
the great scenery and the quaintness of the village. Sydney, NS and
Corner Brook, Newfoundland are a complete waste of time. Virtually
nothing worthwhile in Corner Brook except a picturesque cruise into
port (minus the paper mill) and a few good walking trails.
Saguenay River cruising was outstanding. Great views of numerous
Beluga
whales accompanied by a very good lecturer. Wonderful scenery made
this day special. Quebec City-the best was last! Old town Quebec is
beautiful, clean, and filled with high quality shops and
restaurants. We would return for a future visit. Other positive
comments: --Our room steward was outstanding (couldn't get him in
the suitcase!). --Wheelhouse Lounge servers were very friendly and
went to an effort to remember our names and what we drinked. --The
ship's crew was almost always very cordial and friendly. --The
individual lounge acts were very good and featured comedy,
illusions, juggling and music. --Food in dining room was good, but
not great. Don't expect gourmet dining. The food is nearly as good
as it can be while feeding 2000 passengers. --Food in Sterling
Steak House (see below) was outstanding, the best on the ship and
as good a steak as we've had anywhere. --Disembarkation was
efficient and fast-after the purser corrected my departure time to
the proper group. The negatives: --"Anytime Dining" is anything
but. Could never, and I do mean never, get a table for two. Anytime
between 6:30 and 8:00, there was a wait for any seating. One night,
the wait was 1 hour and 45 minutes! As a result, we only bothered
with dinner in the dining room twice. This was very disappointing
and unlike what we have experienced on other ships. Totally
unacceptable. --The Horizon Court food (buffet) ranged from good to
poor depending on the night. Breakfasts were consistently boring.
Don't look for an omelet or crepe line, or made to order anything.
--On this ship, the specialty steak house is half of the Horizon
Court buffet. Same bright lighting and annoying music. The night we
were there, a really annoyng beeping from a warning signal in
something continued throughout the meal. My wife filed a written
complaint (the only one mentioned in 10 days) and never received a
reply. No waiving of the cover charge, bottle of wine, or anything
else was offered for the inconvenience. --Tours are generally over
priced (like all cruise lines). You can do better on your own with
some advance work. --Do not take the Princess transfer to the
airport in Quebec. The taxi was $27 plus tip and was much faster
and user-freindly. In summary, this cruise was a "mixed bag" and
probably our last for a long while. Total cost for a cabin with
balcony, including airfare and all expenses, was $750 per day. At
this price level, there are other, more deluxe options in travel,
in our opinion.

I sailed B2B (back-to-back) on the Sea Princess and this review
covers the second cruise sailing from Southampton to New York, via
Cobh, Dublin, Thorshaven, Reykjavik, Qaqortoq, and St. Johns,
Newfoundland. I covered the ship on the 1st review, the
2nd cruise food, service, everything was fine, I didn’t see
any change, seemed consistent. Doing a B2B was a breeze,
Princess gave me a letter explaining everything, my new cruise card
for the next cruise, I went to the entry area to validate it and I
was good to go. The ports this cruise were the draw for
me as I always wanted to see Iceland and Greenland, and we lucked
out with the weather for Greenland. Iceland was rainy but we
managed to see everything. Greenland turned out to be a perfect
sunny day, luck was with us. Cobh is the port for Cork and
many did take the Blarney Castle tour. I was glad I made the
choice not to after I saw the picture of my table mate kissing the
stone, upside down as they hold you! There was a band playing
in the park right near the
pier in Cobh, a German band playing Irish folk tunes, Glenn Miller
hits and show tunes. The day was gorgeous and it was nice
sitting out listening to music. I also hiked up to the
cathedral at the top of the hill. I enjoyed being in Cobh and
not touring. In Dublin, I went ashore with two ladies from my table
and did the hop on/hop off bus all around Dublin, shopped on
Grafton street, stopped for snack, walked over to St.
Patrick’s Cathedral, and just had a great day as the weather
was wonderful! I enjoy cities and find the hop on/hop off
bus/trolley type touring works best. I did do a tour in
Thorshaven (Faroe Islands). It was an enjoyable ride through
the countryside, no trees, to Kvivik, a small village with Viking
history and primarily a fishing village. There were all these
little buildings, looked like garages but they had slits for the
wind to blow through, boat storage. Many of the houses had
steel roofs but a lot were still using sod for insulation. We
stopped at a church that was all pine inside, wood is at a premium
and pine is less expensive than other woods. When we drove
up, the guide used a key that was hanging on a hook by the
door. He sang a verse of a hymn for us so we could hear how
the native language would sound. Very interesting tour.
Iceland probably had the worst weather of my cruise but we
definitely made the best of it! Tours in Iceland are very
expensive and do not include everything. If you swim in the
lagoon, you don’t get the falls and geyser. If you go
to the geyser and falls ($150.) you don’t get the Blue
Lagoon. Seven of us were in touch on the boards before the
cruise and agreed to rent a van. Gene volunteered to make the
arrangements. In spite of the fact we had to tender in
Iceland (not usually the case), it worked out very
well. Side note, to fill half a tank, $ 78.00 US and we
complain about prices! We went to Blue Lagoon, first in line, opens
at 10:00 a.m. We stayed in the lagoon almost an hour, and it
was mobbed when we left, very crowded as buses had arrived. I
think it was either 22.00 or 25.00, well worth it, I would do
it again in a heart beat, so fun. I’ve read reviews
where they say it is a major tourist trap but I didn’t
care! Soaking in hot water, blue color you can’t
describe, absolutely the best! There are pots of goop along
the sides that we were scrubbing ourselves with, what a hoot!
Dragging ourselves away from the lagoon, we were off in search of
the Golden Circle, falls and the geyser! It was foggy at
times, raining but we did good, saw it all. When we started
out, I was worried about the fog and visibility but it cleared and
was just overcast with rain. We saw the falls and the geyser,
well worth the visit. The terrain when we were first
driving was very volcanic and looked like we were on another
planet, moon or something, as we got closer to the falls, there
were farms, animals, fields so it wasn’t all volcanic
rock. Because we wanted to do the lagoon, falls and
geyser, we did not see much of Reykjavik other than driving through
on our way to tour. We cruised Prince Christian Sund and it was
wonderful, I stayed outside for almost the whole time, close to 5
hrs., spectacular. I’ve been to Alaska but I really
enjoyed the sheer ruggedness!. There was an ice pilot to
assist passage and naturalist onboard to explain things as we went,
60 miles long. Hard to explain or describe but I was so glad
the weather cooperated and we were able to cruise the Sund.
The next day we were at Qagortoq and that was nice. No
organized tours but interesting to walk around the town and try to
visualize what an isolated life it must be in the
winter. There was a tourist office that opened for us
and there were items for sale. They were doing a
booming business. St. John’s, Newfoundland was our last stop
before New York. I did a tour, a coastal hike and that it
was! They bus you up to signal hill (think Marconi and the
wireless) and walk you back to the ship. Now they tell you
it’s a downhill walk, not quite true! It was wonderful
but I wonder how many sign up finding it a little too
strenuous! It wasn’t a mile downhill, more like 2.5, up
and down, along a cliff hanging on to a chain, not for the faint of
heart either. I’d do it again in a minute! St.
John’s is great, worth a little more time. A
weather front was moving in so our stay in St. John’s was cut
short. This was a great crossing, I really enjoyed it.
I’ve looked at this itinerary for years and finally did
it. I’ve done 2 transatlantic, England to Miami and
Miami to England, with all the sea days. I like this
one because it had ports and sea days, 6 ports, 6 sea days and
cruising Prince Christian Sund, perfect!